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It's weird looking at those levels because they're so damn inefficient. Obviously they're built to be showy, but for me one of the best bits about Armadillo Run is optimising your solution down to use the least/cheapest parts. A bit like SpaceChem.

My idea of a puzzle game is one where all the information you need is given to you beforehand. You have an overview of the entire level where no information is hidden from you, you know exactly which tools are available to use and what they do, and you only need to apply your wits to achieve the goal. Plus, there is usually no barrier between concept and execution: When you know how to solve the puzzle, there is nothing preventing you from actually solving it.

I see, thanks for elaborating a bit. I admit I have a hard time coming up with examples of the type of game you seek. The Portal series sort of goes in that direction. The puzzles usually have one intended solution, but there's often alternative possibilities that work just as well. However, Portal also incorporates some platforming aspects, so there exists somewhat of a barrier between finding a solution and executing it. Plus, I have a hard time believing you haven't tried the games already, so recommending them is a bit of a moot point.

World of Goo might be to your liking. As in Portal, there often is one intended solution but the game mechanics are flexible enough to support multiple approaches. Again though, the execution does require some degree of player skill or at the very least a close familiarity with the physics engine.

World of Goo might be to your liking. As in Portal, there often is one intended solution but the game mechanics are flexible enough to support multiple approaches. Again though, the execution does require some degree of player skill or at the very least a close familiarity with the physics engine.

Between the time of the post you quoted and this one, I completed it for a third time. I think it actually makes a reference to Armadillo Run in an early level.

World of Goo does an excellent job of creating new challenges with each new level. Only on a handful of occasions are you required to use a solution from a previous level, because it just keeps throwing new goo balls at you and it's not even afraid to overhaul its main mechanic in a few levels. The appeal depends heavily on the novelty, so at a conceptual level it's much less interesting. I still love the game to bits, though.

I actually think Valve is doing a great job of keeping the action barrier lower than the puzzle barrier. Things like portal snapping and funneling make sure that once you know the solution to the level, executing it is relatively easy.

You might say that World of Goo also has an action barrier, since you have to build structures that don't collapse, but the challenge lies in understanding the physics beyond a conceptual level, so you can judge whether your bridge will reach the other side in one piece.

A personal favourite of mine is the "Deadly Rooms of Death" series. They probably don't allow for the kind of creativity you're after (despite many levels having multiple solutions), but certainly meet the puzzle requirement.